Saturday, February 28, 2009

So the last couple of days, I've been tested out different variations of cars I made. Each car ran fairly well and reached the 5 metre mark.

This is the original car i made, as you can see there are some changes. At the end of the car i cut a section off so i could angle the balloon and cause the car to have a better push.

So, I added a tube to the end of the balloon and I figured that it worked better then just the balloon itself.

So as I did my car trials, I found out that the balloon would fly backwards and then block the airflow. The straws I stuck together and tapped onto the car acts as a hood and it doesn't allow the balloon to fly backwards. I have to say, that it works quite well. I also brought down the size of the back wheels because they didn't really do anything.

This car took a lot of work because I had to put the logo on, and I added a piece of wood to make the car heavier. The wheels took especially long because I had to glue everything straight so that the car would also roll straight. It took a while to glue the wheels onto the axle also because if the wheels weren't straight the car would turn.

This could possible be my final car, I still haven't decided if i want to put the straw hood on.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

So I decided that the model I posted below will be my final idea. I am still working on it and I have made some changes on it and I still need to make many more changes. I tested it the other day and it runs more than 5 meters, the only problem was that it didn't go straight. I'll try to have a video out soon. Even though my car's a long way from being finished and running smoothly, it's getting there. My question for my peers is...Does anyone know where to find some decent balloons?I discovered that after a certain time a balloon has been used, the elasticity doesn't work as well as it did in the beginning and so, the air is being pushed out slower than the first time it was used.

Friday, February 20, 2009

I created another design that has originated from one of my first sketches from my first blog.

Body: cut off the edges and curved it so it would cut off some weight and possibly run faster.

I used this type of material that is a layer of Styrofoam between two cardboard papers. It is sturdy yet light

Unfortunately I wasn't smart enough and I didn't realize that the background was also a piece of white paper so the body of the car is sort of camouflaged

Wheels: I created my own type of wheels. It's basically made up of a piece of cardboard and layered off with two pieces of sturdy paper plates. As like the body of the car it is sturdy yet light. To finish the wheel, i started to cover the sides with tape so that the wheel doesn't fall apart.

One major problem I had was that the balloon was touching the wheels, so i added these slanted panels that raised the balloon to a slant.

The Straws underneath the body are guides that the sticks that are connected to the wheels run though them. It allows the axle to spin freely

The car ran about 2 metres and then hit a wall.

Some things i need to adjust are the wheels and the slanted panels. I need to glue the wheels onto the axle exactly at 90degrees in order for the car to run straight. The panels i made are to low so i still need to raise them so the balloon doesn't hit the wall

Friday, February 6, 2009

OK..I know I've been posting a lot lately..but i think i have my final idea

I will use two long balloons, attached to the front just behind the wheel and then attached to the axle on the back. In the front, i will take apart a clip and clip the two balloons in place.

That will ensure that the two balloons will stay. This balloon car will not need air. To power the car, you will need to wrap the balloons ends to the axle and roll the car backwards, as a result, the balloons will wrap around the axle stretching the elasticity. The greater the times the balloons are wrapped around the axle, the more rotations there will be in the wheels.

As for wheels, I will try to find a light sturdy material since the frame of the car will be processed stud wood, the type in your walls. I chose this type of wood because it is fairly light, but heavy enough to keep the car on ground